Review: White Hot by Ilona Andrews

My thanks to the publisher for providing me with a digital review copy. No compensation was provided for this review, and all opinions are my own.

The Hidden Legacy series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Ilona Andrews continues as Nevada and Rogan navigate a world where magic is the norm…and their relationship burns hot.

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Nevada Baylor has a unique and secret skill—she knows when people are lying—and she’s used that magic (along with plain, hard work) to keep her colorful and close-knit family’s detective agency afloat. But her new case pits her against the shadowy forces that almost destroyed the city of Houston once before, bringing Nevada back into contact with Connor “Mad” Rogan.

Rogan is a billionaire Prime—the highest rank of magic user—and as unreadable as ever, despite Nevada’s “talent.” But there’s no hiding the sparks between them. Now that the stakes are even higher, both professionally and personally, and their foes are unimaginably powerful, Rogan and Nevada will find that nothing burns like ice…

Nevada Baylor has a unique and secret skill—she knows when people are lying—and she’s used that magic (along with plain, hard work) to keep her colorful and close-knit family’s detective agency afloat. But her new case pits her against the shadowy forces that almost destroyed the city of Houston once before, bringing Nevada back into contact with Connor “Mad” Rogan.

Rogan is a billionaire Prime—the highest rank of magic user—and as unreadable as ever, despite Nevada’s “talent.” But there’s no hiding the sparks between them. Now that the stakes are even higher, both professionally and personally, and their foes are unimaginably powerful, Rogan and Nevada will find that nothing burns like ice…

The wait is over at long last, and friends, that wait was not in vain. WHITE HOT is Ilona Andrews at their finest, delivering more epic world building, more snarky banter, and more swoon-worthy moments than ever. If you like urban fantasy, fantastic characters and dialogue, and romance, then you need to be reading the Hidden Legacy series.

Two months after the chaos of the Adam Pierce case that changed her life, Nevada Baylor is conducting business as usual at Baylor Investigations, meaning that she’s trying to work while also wrangling her colourful and crazy family members/employees all while avoiding the two Prime magic uses who want her services. See, Nevada has a pretty special magical gift: she can tell when people are lying, and in the past she’s even been able to pull the truth from people without their consent. Even Connor “Mad” Rogan, the most dangerous and notorious Prime in the Americas, wants Nevada…but not just for her magical abilities.

First things first, the world building in WHITE HOT is seriously on point. Ilona Andrews really brings their A game here, providing a more detailed look into the magic system and subsequent social hierarchy that dominates every aspect of life in this world. We learn more about the magical Houses, how they’re formed and what their roles and responsibilities — and feuds — are, and we also get to see more types of magic beyond those introduced in the series opener, BURN FOR ME. My personal favourite is a magic wielder whose affinity for animals allows them to work with a squad of ninja ferrets. Ninja ferrets, people!

The romance is also seriously great in this one, which was a huge relief for me because I think the whole “crazy dangerous” thing that Rogan has going for him had the potential to go terribly awry in the hands of less accomplished authors. But this time around, Rogan is calmer and more focused — focused on Nevada, and showing her how good they would be together. And y’all…they’d be good. Everything about them is perfect, from their bickering to their sweet nothings. It would be annoying if it weren’t so totally swoon worthy. To cap it all off, Rogan is a total rock for Nevada while she’s dealing with some potentially life-altering revelations, offering up advice and support without trying to control her decisions.

But don’t worry, WHITE HOT isn’t just about Nevada and Rogan: all of the Baylors are important this time around, and each member of the family has an important role to play. I especially appreciated learning more about Catalina and Arabella, Nevada’s younger sisters, since I think they kind of got the short end of the stick in the first book. Let’s just say that the entire family is in possession of some unique, insanely powerful magical abilities, and they know how to use ’em. While they’ve always tried to hide those gifts, the secret’s out now and big changes are on the horizon for everyone involved. I for one can’t wait to see what those changes will bring…aside from more trouble, of course.

If you’re not reading this series, you’re doing yourself a disservice. This is one of the most creative and fun urban fantasy series out there right now, and the central romance plot is the icing on the cake. I’m eagerly awaiting the release of the series finale, WILD FIRE, tentatively scheduled for this August!